Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1515063
C I N E M A A U D I O S O C I E T Y. O R G 25 J.J. Abrams and Daisy Ridley on the set of Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens "There are no doubt aspects of the filmmaking process as important as that of sound, but there is nothing more important," continued Abrams. "I have been incredibly lucky to collaborate with some of the best production and post-production sound teams in the business, and I'm grateful every day—as filmmaker and moviegoer—for their remarkable artistry and skill." Abrams' entrance into the movie business started at the age of 16 in the sound world, when he composed music for Don Dohler's film Nightbeast. As a college senior, he collaborated with Jill Mazursky to craft a feature film treatment that laid the foundation for Taking Care of Business, his first produced film. Abrams' journey in the industry expanded as he worked on the screenplay for Armageddon (1998) and co-created (as well as composed the opening theme of) Felicity (1998), which ran for four seasons. He made his feature directing debut with Mission: Impossible III (2006), reinvigorating the franchise. He produced the hit mystery film Cloverfield (2008) and co-created Fringe (2008). He directed the Star Trek (2009) reboot, proving successful with fans and newcomers to the franchise. He next directed Super 8 (2011), co-produced by Steven Spielberg, and produced Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011). He returned to direct the follow-up to his reboot, Star Trek Into Darkness (2013). Disney and Lucasfilm announced J.J. as their choice for director of the first episode in the new Star Wars trilogy, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015), with Kathleen Kennedy convincing him that his voice would be the best choice to bring new life to this franchise, as he had done with two others before. He also produced Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015) and Star Trek Beyond (2016), and executive-produced Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017). Abrams returned to the galaxy far far away to direct Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker (2019), completing the trilogy he started. In addition to his film and television work, Abrams also conceived the novel S. with writer Doug Dorst, which became a New York Times bestseller. For Broadway, he has produced The Play That Goes Wrong, Derren Brown's Secret, GUTENBERG! The Musical!, and the play Appropriate. This will be the 19th year that CAS bestows its Filmmaker Award. Past honorees include Alejandro González Iñárritu, Gil Cates, George Clooney, Bill Condon, Jonathan Demme, Jon Favreau, Taylor Hackford, Richard Linklater, James Mangold, Rob Marshall, Paul Mazursky, Jay Roach, Sir Ridley Scott, Henry Selick, Steven Spielberg, Quentin Tarantino, Joe Wright and Edward Zwick.